St. Raymond's Shane Rector is enjoying a solid AAU season with the New Jersey-based Playaz Club.Denis Gostev

A big right-handed slam, a sweet in-and-out crossover and running one-hander off the glass, then a drive and dish for an easy basket – Shane Rector displayed his entire arsenal Saturday afternoon in the i.S. 8/Spring H.S. Classic.

It was just a glimpse of what has made the 6-foot St. Raymond junior guard one of the area’s fastest rising prospects. His improving skill set, to go along with a prudent decision to join the New Jersey-based Playaz Club AAU programs, has taken Rector to the next level.

A new college coach seemingly reaches out every day. Rector recently landed his first high-major Division I offer, from Providence. Oklahoma and SMU called St. Raymond coach Oliver Antigua the other day. Pittsburgh, Iowa State, Dayton and UMass are also heavily involved, among others.

“I came from basically nowhere,” said Rector, who left the New York Gauchos along with several others when they lost their Nike sponsorship. “I wasn’t really on anybody’s scouting radar. This is a big summer for me.”

Rector has gotten off to a fine start with the Playaz Club-Juniors, leading them to a 9-5 record in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League as its leading scorer. His breakout performance was a sensational 24-point effort in an upset of the Oakland Soldiers, at the time the top-ranked 17U team in the country which entered the matchup undefeated. It was a big win for the Playaz also, coming off a disappointing result in its host tournament, Spring Fling.

“He’s come up big in big moments,” Playaz coach Dwayne Lee said of Rector, who was a key cog in St. Ray’s winning its first CHSAA Class AA intersectional title since 2004. “Shane’s been excellent.”

Though he joined a team that had been together for a while, Rector has fit in well, Lee said. The toughest adjustment has been sharing point guard duties with Hudson Catholic’s Kavon Stewart, a highly thought of prospect like Rector.

“It might’ve taken him one weekend [to get comfortable],” Lee said.

As was the case at St. Ray’s, he’s surrounded by talented Division I talent, such as Stewart, Reggie Cameron and Mike Young of Hudson Catholic (N.J.).

“When you play with good guys, it’s only going to heighten your game,” Rector said.

Talent evaluator Tom Konchalski has been impressed with Rector’s play. He said the lead guard can play at the Big East level “selectively,” and considered him right up there among the best point guards in New York City, if not the best one.

“He has unforced athleticism,” Konchalski said. “He has great quickness. He can get into the lane.”

The commute to New Jersey twice a week for practice can be tiresome, but the exposure he gets with the Playaz has been more than worth it. Top college coaches are after him and recruiting services are just as high on the talented point guard. And he still has a few months left to further establish himself among the nation’s best.

“I’m just starting to get national exposure,” Rector said. “I’ve been working hard. It feels good. I’m finally getting what I feel like I’ve been working on.”